Personal Film-Making

Hey

So todays post is going to be a slight change of tone. Usually I try to post content relevant to film-making in some form, usually involving some technical aspect of film-making, but today I'm going to talk about the personal aspects of making films.

For a long time in my early attempts at becoming an Indie film-maker I found myself making more excuses for not making films than actually making films, and I find that it's a common issue with film-makers I know and socialise with, I'd always have an excuse not to do something, not having a good enough camera, or not having a mic port on the camera I did have.

All of these excuses were just that - excuses. As of late I've been out filming a lot more, and recently I've really been thriving as a film-maker and becoming much more of a professional with my filmic vision becoming clearer with every project, and it's mostly due to the realisation that even if I'm making films with basic equipment, I'm still making films, and that technological limitations aren't something to lament over and use as an excuse to give up before you start, but something to embrace enthusiastically as a challenge as a film-maker.  There really is nothing more satisfying than overcoming a challenge and getting lovely shots which people assume you had better equipment for.

Another benefit of just making film regardless of what gear you have is that you dramatically improve technically as a film-maker - You get to understand what the settings on your kit do and you learn to manipulate them to get the right set up for the shoot conditions, and you get a better eye for what to do, you learn what shots work well, and what looks horrible, and you get the opportunity to develop your style as a film-maker, some of your first films will be awful, yet as a film-maker they're some of the films you'll love the most, and the films that you will learn the most from.

Pick ideas you're interested in - If you love Film Noir but you think your lack of resources only allows you to make a low value chick flick, don't make the chick flick! Make projects you're interested in, even with a lack of resources doing a project you have enthusiasm has more of a chance of actually being made. There's plenty of ways of making almost anything on little/no budget, just look in  second hand shops, or even fancy dress stores for basic fake blood etc.

Collaboration is key! If you need help with a production, from editors to actors you can usually find someone online who will be willing to help, and with everything in Indie Film, if you don't ask, you don't get. There's plenty of places you can look for help online, such as film forums (See my personal favourite IndieTalk)

Once you've made your film, get someone to critique it! The best way to develop as a film-maker is through criticism, get someone who knows what they're talking about (Even if it's a lecturer if you're doing a film/media course in school/college) and ask them to pick out the issues, then once they have go back and re-edit with their suggestions, see what works and what doesn't, you may get some criticism that sounds good, but when applied it doesn't actually fit into your creative vision, this usually means that it's not right for your project, and the likelihood is that the flaw is just a film technique you need to practice more, and the more you do it, the better it will look!

Keep On Filming!

-Geraint